THE GENTLE ART. 119 



Spread, tiny Nautilus, the living sail ; 

 Dive, at thy choice, or brave the freshening gale ? 

 If unreproved the ambitious eagle mount, 

 Sunward, to seek the daylight in its fount, 

 nays, gulfs, and ocean's Indian width, shall be, 

 Till the world perishes, a field for thee." 



Wordsworth. 



In sober earnestness, there is a pleasure, there is a 

 sport, and to this we object. Upon our juvenile 

 readers we will bring to bear the tried influence of 

 a favourite and sagacious friend, whose reasoning, 

 for aught we can see, can be gainsaid only by those 

 who are old in sophistry : — " For my own part, I 

 can hardly think that fishing for mere sport is en- 

 tirely right. The inhabitants of the waters are 

 doubtless as happy as those of the land or the air, 

 and we have no privilege which authorizes us to 

 put an end to the existence and terminate the hap- 

 piness of any of these, for so light a reason as that 

 of our momentary pleasure. If the Creator has 

 seen fit to make them, there is, doubtless, a good 

 reason why man should not wantonly destroy them. 

 We have certainly a right to take the lives of these 

 animals, and use them for our substantial wants ; 

 but a kind heart will be reluctant to quench the 

 light of life and happiness in the humblest creature, 

 for so inadequate an end as amusement. The fishes, 

 indeed, devour each other for subsistence, and, 

 where their interests clash, they engage in battle, 

 for so their instincts teach them ; but they never 

 ilestroy each other in wanton sport ; and man, en- 

 dowed with reason, should not break a rule of mercy 



